


When I Fade Into The River, Take A Picture

by orphan_account



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Sad, prussia fading, prussia is dead, roamano crying, romano taking pictures, traveling with prussia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-04
Updated: 2017-07-04
Packaged: 2018-11-23 09:44:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11400030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Prussia is dying. No one can change that, well, not like anyone knows. Other than Romano. Together, the two make Prussia's last memeories unforgettable. Taking pictures and traveling, until the day comes when he passes and Romano has to somehow tell the other nations that Prussia is gone.Eh, kinda what it's about. It's mostly centered around Prussia's last moments and taking pictures.





	When I Fade Into The River, Take A Picture

The albino looked to the smaller man next to him.  
"Hey Romano?" The older nation turned to the firey Italian. They were watching their younger brothers, as creepy as it sounded, but Romano didn't trust the buff German nation with his brother.  
"What?" He turned to glare at the annoying red-eyed Prussian.  
"How are you and Toni doing?" Gilbert smirked as thr Italian grew red, with anger or embarrassment, Gilbert didn't know. Probabaly both.  
"None of you buisness! I still hate the tomato-"  
"Fratello?" A bubbly Italian poked his head over the bush his brother and Prussia were hiding behind.  
"Aiya!" Romano jumped up and ran off, Prussia smirked before quickly following Romano's lead.  
Germany sighed and shook his head while Italy stared on, confused.  
As soon as Romano and Prussia had gotten far enough away, Romano began to hit the Prussian, although it didn't hurt the older nation.  
"You got us caught! You birdie-bastard!!" Romano shouted.  
"Huh, that's a new one." Prussia mused.  
Romano looked at the albino confused.  
"What? Something on my awesome face?" Prussia teased.  
"Of course not!" Romano looked away flushed. "You just seem different...not that I care!! I- I just-"  
"Kesesesese!!" Prussia's distinct laugh tang out "Silly little Italia. I'm dying-" Romano froze. "-I thought I was making it obvious!"  
"No!" Romano pushed Prussia away. "You're not! You can't die! You're a nation! Nations can't die! You're not-"  
Prussia cut off Romano's rambling. "I'm not a nation anymore Romano." Romano's eyes widened. "Aww, now don't cry. I'll need your help with something before I go."  
Romano nodded. The Italian wiped his face and look up to Gilbert.  
"Okay, I need you to help me make memories, and we'll need a camera..."  
As Prussia explained his plan, Romano's eyes began to water. Prussia is dying.  
"...you got all that?" The albino looked to Romano to see tears cascading down his cheeks. He sighed. "C'mon, I want all of my memories to be happy, so don't cry." Romano didn't respond, instead, he tackled Gilbert in a hug.  
"Please! Please don't..-please don't leave me!!" Romano cried and buried his head in the Prussian's shoulder. Gilbert pet Romano's hair. "I have to, and I need your help. To tell everyone good-bye, please Romano. I don't have much time."  
Pleading red eyes met watery brown. Romano sighed, he nodded numbly.  
Prussia fist-pumped and drug Romano along, humming. Although the Italian still had wet eyes.

#Germany amd Prussia's House: Prussia's Room#

Romano watched the dying man dig through his drawers before pulling out two polaroids, a flute, and a blank, midnight blue scrapbook.  
The albino shot a grin to Romano. "Ready?" He asked.  
"As I'll ever be, I guess.." Romano was leaned against the wall, looking down when a flash caught his attention and his head snapped upwards.  
"What-?" Romano blushed.  
"Kesesese! Perfect!" Prussia proclaimed. The old camera slowly spat out a black image. Prussia grabbed it and began to shake it wildly. Slowly, it showed a picture of a dark haired man leaning against the wall, looking down with flushed cheeks and hidden eyes. His arms were crossed over his chest and the top two buttons of his salmon colored shirt were undone.  
The albino quickly put it into the book and pulled Romano close, turning the camera and...flash! Prussia released Romano and shook the black picture that the camera had produced until it showed a pale, smiling albino with his eyes shut tightly and a startled Italian with wide eyes, and a halk angered, half surprised, look on his face. Prussia put that picture in the book aswell.  
"Bastard! Warn someone before doing that!" Prussia felt a sharp smack to the back of his head and he laughed.  
"Nah, I prefer it when they don't know. It gives a more..natural reaction. I think so anyway!" The red-eyed nation shot a cheeky grin to Romano.  
"Catch!" Romano barely caught the item thrown to him. He looked at it. It was another polaroid.  
"Help me take pictures of the other nations. All of them! And always take them when they don't expect it! I'll handle all of the selfies!" Prussia exclaimed.  
Romano nodded, looking down at the camera. He grinned and held up the polaroid and snapping a picture of the albino. "Like that?" Romano smirked.  
"Kesesese!! Exactly like that!!" Prussia smiled, his eyes crinkling.  
"Alrightly"  
And with that, the two countried were off. Taking pictures and traveling around the world. Prussia and Romano were having the the time of their lives!  
But the time came when they had finished and Prussia's time was coming to an end.  
"Okay! I'll call you again later! I'm going to work on the scrapbook!"  
Romano nodded, confused. "Aren't we already done?" Romano questioned as he let the room.  
Prussia cracked his knuckles before flipping the scrapbook open. He took out the picture of Romano leaning against the wall, flipped it over, and began to write.  
Finishing Romano's message, he began the next one, and kept going until he had a message for the whole world in the large book.  
When he got to the end, a picture fell out. A picture of him. It was too dark to see anything but the albino's upper body. It was a side view, the moon hitting the man making his white hair shine brightly. A flute was held to his lips and his eyes were lightly closed as he played. 'Romano must have taken this when I was looking.' He thought, smiling softly.  
He turned the picture over and began to write.

'Hey! Nice picture Romano! I didn't even see you! Well, if your reading of hearing this, I must be dead. Who would've thought? After all this time...anyway! I've written messages to everyone personally. It's on the back of your picture! All you have to do is pull it out and read. They're awesome, I assure you. I'm going miss you all, don't cry, and don't forget me!

Abshied,  
The Free State of Prussia  
Teutonic Knight  
Gilbert Beilschmidt'

He put the photo on the front cover of the book and went after Romano, book in hand. He caught the usualy angry Italian raiding the kitchen. "Do you have any damn thing other than potatoes and water?" Romano looked at the Prussian and blushed. He grabbed a tomato before slamming the door of the refrigerator close. "What?" He demanded, taking a bite out of the tomato.  
"It's done, when is the next world meeting?" Prussia spoke and walked over to Romano.  
"Next week, why?" Romano looked into sad red eyes.  
"Okay, I need you to do two things for me." Prussia gave Romano a camera once more amd motioned for him to follow.  
They moved back into Prussia's room and the albino began to take off his shirt.  
"Whoah! Whay are you doing!?" Romano shreiked.  
"Shush! Don't let West know I'm home! I'm only changing." Romano slightly relaxed at that.  
"Anyway! I'm going to need you to carry the scrapbook to the world meeting and whenever there's time, take the picture of me out. The one on the front. Okay? Now follow me!" While explaining, Prussia had slipped on his Teutonic Knight armor and put his flute on his belt.  
"Why can't you do it yourself? And where are we going?" The Italian asked, following after the taller man.  
The Prussian stopped in his tracks and the smile fell from his lips. He turned to Lovino with a serious look. Romano gulped. "I'm dying, today, Romano. That's why I need your help. I think you'll know when the time is right to take a picture. I want to go into the river with the waves carrying me away while I wear the remembrance of the best years of my life and fade into the current...wow! Kesesese!!That was really poetic of me!!" Gilbert's face wore a grin once more.  
"Idiota!" Gilbert felt a punch to the stomach served by Romano. He dubbled over and looked up to Romano gasping. He grew worried as the Italian shut his eyes and began to shake.  
"Hey, hey, hey...what's wrong?" Gilbert wrapped an arm around the sobbing man's shoulders.  
"What's wrong!?" Lovino cried. "What's wrong!? I should be the one asking you that! You're the one about to die!" Prussia flinched. "You're laughing about it too!!" The brunette's shoulders shook harder as he put his head in his hands and let out ugly sobs. "Aren't you scared!? Aren't you sad!? Aren't you amgry!? You're about to die!"  
"I know! Okay!? I know I'm about to die! Amd yes!! Yes! Yes! Yes! I am angry! I am sad! And I am scared! So scared!! I don't know what's going to happen to me, and that absolutely terrifies me!" Prussia exclaimed, tears shining in his eyes. "I just don't let it get to me! It's my last day. I don't want to thing of anything upsetting! I want to be happy!! So give me one last request and cheer up!" Prussia looked to Romano, pleading.  
Romano sighed and pulled Prussia into a tight hug. "I'm going to miss you Gilbert..." He pulled away and let his hands rest on Gilbert's shoulders, looking him in the eyes. "I'm glad I knew you. You will always be a nation tonme and I sill never forget you Prussia." A tear fell down both cheeks. "You're awesome." He finished and wrapped Prussia in a tight hug once more, Prussia hugging him back.  
"I'm glad I knew you to Romano." Prussia spoke as the two sat in silence for a moment, enjoying each others hugs, until Romano stood. "Didn't you say you wanted to die in a river?" Romano looked away. "C'mon ya bastard. I need to respect you wishes and not let you die on the ground of a fucking forest." Prussia laughed and walked along his friend to the river.  
"Hey Romano, remember, you're just as important as Feliciano. If was him in your position right now, I wouldn't have gotten this done. Thank you." Romano only nodded, giving a small smile.  
They reached the river and Prussia smiled a small, bittersweet smile. He looked to Romano for the last time, tears brimming his eyes. He sighed.  
"Here I go.." A small 'click' was heard.  
Prussia waded further into the water until it reached his waist. A small 'click' was heard. He laid back and let the current slowly carry him away and a tear went downnhis cheek. More tears were realeased as he lost feeling in his legs. A small 'click' was heard along with a sniffle. Prussia quickly faded along the river. The albino looked up to the sky through teary eyes.  
'Habe ich dich stolz gemacht, Fritz?' He thought before fading completely.  
Romano looked at the three pictures he had taken and cried. 'I'm going to miss you, Prussia.' Romano sank to his knees and cried harder for the loss of his friend.

#World Meeting#

Romano fidgeted in his seat, nervous about how the other nations will react upon discovering the Prussian nation is gone. The Italian had the dark blue scrapbook in his lap, the picture he took of Prussia playing the flute stood on the cover.  
'The on on the front.' Prussia's voice rang through his head.  
"Everyone in their seats, the meeting is now starting!" Germany's loud voice sounded througout the room.  
'How is Germany going to react!?' Romano thought sadly. Tears swelled up in his eyes again as he looked down at the Prussian that is now only a memory in a picture.  
"What's wrong Romano?" A cheery Spaniard asked before sitting down next to him.  
"Nothing, you bastard." Romano grumbled and blinked the tears away from his eyes. He looked around as everyone slowly took their seats, and before any chaos started or Germany officially started the meeting, Romano stood up, although a bit shaky.  
"Before we start," Romano put the book on the table and took the front picture out. "Prussia..." He sighed. "Prussia wants me to read this to all of you."  
It was then, nations started to notice the loud ex-nation that usually came (even though he wasn't invited) was missing.  
Romano flipped the picture of over, took a breath, and began to read. "Hey! Nice picture Romano! I didn't even see you! Well, if you're reading or hearing this, I must be.." Romano tensed up.  
"Hurry up! I don't want to be here all day!" Austria snapped.  
Romano swalled the lump in his throat. "I must...I must be..I must be..dead." Romano felt the atmosphere of the the room shift. "Who would've thought? After all this time...anyway! I've written messages to everyone personally. It's on the back of your picture! All you have to do is take it out and read."  
'So that's what he was doing.' Romano thought, remembering when Prussia told he was going to work on the already finished book. 'Guess it wasn't finished.'  
Romano continued to read. "They're awesome, I assure you. I'm going to miss you all, don't cry, and don't forget me! Abshied, The Free State of Prussia, Teutonic Knight, Gilbert Beilschmidt."  
The room was silent for a moment, then a laugh broke out, shortly followed by the rest of the room.  
"Do you really expect us to believe that!? Nice try Romano, tell Prussia that as well!" Hungary exclaimed.  
Romano's face grew red. 'How dare they laugh at this!?' Romano thought angrily. He began to think back to the last month Prussia was alive. Taking pictures, watching Prussia tackle someone to get a selfie, usually watching him get hit afterwards, all of the laughs and jokes they shared, talking about their little brothers, having late night converstaiond in hotel rooms or under the stars. Romano's eyes began to water and he sat down and put his head in his hands. Some of the laughter in the room stopping.  
Then, the Italian thought about Prussia's last moments alive. The older nation hugging him goodbye, thanking him, standing ankle deep in the water, the edge of the snow white cape getting wet, watching him move further into the water, his cape starting to fan around him, the Prussian laying down to float along the river, sparkling tears running down ghostly cheeks, a small smile gracing the albino's face as he faded, falling to his knees and crying for the dead nation. Romano began to sob into his hands. The laughter around the room completely stopping.  
"Romano?" Spain asked, worried.  
A loud sob answered him back. The atmosphere chamged again. Nations around the room beginning to realize that this wasn't a joke and they just laughed at their long-time friend, who is now dead.  
The meeting was quickly adjourned as half of the world was having a breakdown. Instead, the scrapbook was passed around and pictures were handed out to all who wanted to read their note. Some nations smiled, remembering their good time with the red-eyed man, some just smiling to hold it together. They shared memories and had a proper funeral for the man, at the very river his had faded in. Some crying as they left.  
Prussia was staring down at them, shaking his head smiling. "I thought I told them not to cry."

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it!!!


End file.
